Excerpt: ... Fund Insurance Co m p a n y (2022) 81 Cal.App.5th 96, 104- 105.) The Court therefore assumes the allegations are factual for the purposes of this motion. Here, Plaintiffs allege that the employees were negligently hired in the second cause of action, and negligently supervised and trained in the third cause of action. Plaintiffs' argument is that the failure – acknowledged by Defendants – to a v o id t h e w it h d rawal of money by unauthor...

Excerpt: ...ify whether the Plaintiff viewed the English - o r Sp a n is h -language version of the arbitration agreement. It appears from the record that it was the Spanish version, though that is u n c le a r . If Defendant does not know which version it is, the use of the English version is a d d it io n a l e v id e n c e t h a t P la in t if f d id n o t p e r s o n a lly a g r e e t o a r b it r a t io n . If it is t h e Spanish version, such version s...

Excerpt: ...ld file a Second Amended Complaint but did not prior to the demurrer hearing. The Court granted additional time to do so and set timelines for filing and set a demurr er hearing date . On April 3, 2024, the Court expressed puzzlement that no opposition to the demurrer to the Second Amended Complaint was filed. Plaintiffs' counsel said she believed she could submit on her original opposition. Defense counsel and the Court thought the dire ctions w...

Excerpt: ...d facts asserting the following : Defendant was issued a credit card account. (UF 1, 3.) Defendant agreed to be bound by the terms and conditions set forth in the Cardmember Agreement. (UF 2.) Aft e r re ce iving the cre dit card, t he account was charge d for various goods, se rvice s, or cash adv ances. (UF 3.) Plaintiff complied with its obligations under the Agreement by paying vendors for all charges that were made on Defendant's account. ( ...

Excerpt: ...r o p e r . Th e c la s s is s u f f ic ie n t ly n u m e r o u s , c o n s is t in g o f o ve r 2 ,6 0 0 in d iv id u a ls , a n d it is a s c e r t a in a b le b y r e f e r e n c e t o Defendant's personnel and payroll records. Also, Plaintiffs are adequate class representativ es, as their claims do not conflict with and are not antagonistic to the claims of other class members. Plaintiffs' claims are also typical and arise from the same emplo...

Excerpt: ... s h o w in g t h a t a t r ia b le is s u e o f m a t e r ia l fact exists. [ Aguilar v. Atlantic Richfield Co. , supra , 25 Cal.4th at 850; see also La w Office s of Dixon R. Howe ll v. Va lle y (2005) 129 Cal.App.4th 1076, 1092. This case comes down to one simple question: Does Plaintiff have standing to bring this wrongful death claim and the associated negligence claim? In this case, Plaintiff and the decedent in a fatal vehicle collision in...

Excerpt: ...arious wage and hour claims, including meal and rest period violations, minimum and overtime wage violations, wage -statement violations, failure to timely pay wages during employment and at t e r m in a t io n , f a ilure to maintain accurate wage statements, failure to reimburse business expenses, failure to disclose material terms at the time of hire, a UCL claim and a claim for PAGA penalties. The subject class consists of current and forme r...

Excerpt: ...m . The original complaint contained allegations that there were written agreements via email. The new complaint describes the agreement as oral with supporting emails, which are not attached. Counsel is bound by the prior allegation that this is a w r it t e n a g r eement. ( Deveny v. Entropin, Inc . (2006) 139 Cal.App. 4 th 408.) Thus, the terms of the written agreement must be included in the complaint . There is no pleading of what the actua...

Excerpt: ...n d CO N TIN U ED in p a r t a s follows. a) P la in t if f 's m o t io n is GRANTED in part, DENIED in part and CONTINUED in part as follows. Th e Co u r t D EN IES Plaintiff's request for terminating sanctions at t h is t im e . However, the Court hereby O RD ERS Defendant to comply with its November 22, 2023, order compelling responses to the Plaintiff's Requests for Ad m is s io n o n o r b e f o r e Ap r il 1 6 , 2 0 2 4 , o r f a c e t e r ...

Excerpt: ...leged statutory and civil penalties concern various wage and hour claims, including meal and rest period violations, minimum and overtime wage violations, wage -statement violations, failure to timely pay wages during employment and at t e r m in a t io n , f a ilure to maintain accurate wage statements, failure to reimburse business expenses, failure to disclose material terms at the time of hire, a UCL claim and a claim for PAGA penalties. The ...

Excerpt: ...s t a g e , d is p o s it ive . P la in t if f 's complaint engages in what some courts call “shotgun pleading,” in which the specific actions of each defendant are poorly defined. Determining the potential lia b ilit y o f M EB Loan Trust VI and Specialized Loan Servicing requires some additional detail to assist the parties and the Court. The failure to outline which Defendants are liable under which theories is untenable . Whether lack of ...

Excerpt: ...k that requires a contractor's license pursuant to Bu s . & P ro f. Co d e § 7 0 2 6 . Th e re fo re, Plaintiff, as an unlicensed contractor, is precluded from seeking recovery in law or equity for compensation under the alleged agreement. (Bus & Prof. Code § 7031(a).) Further, as it appears Plaintiff is unable to demonstrate the required licensure, the Court finds that leave to amend would be futile under the circumstances and is, therefore, d...

Excerpt: ...a).) Therefore, Defendant is entitled to an order compelling Plaintiff to provide answers, without obj ection, to the subject discovery within 30 days. (Co d e Civ. Proc. § 2030.290(b). ) The Court further finds that Defendant is entitled to an award of monetary sanctions in connection with this motion. (Code Civ. Proc. § 2030.290(c), 2023.010(d), 2023.030(a); Cal. Rules of Ct., rule 3.1348(a).) Therefore, monetary sanctions in the amount o f $...

Excerpt: ...rgument that this Court is divested of jurisdiction for a contempt proceeding. Petitioner's citation to Albrecht v. Superior Court (1982) 132 Cal.App.3d 612 appears reasonable, and Defendant's citations do not appear to be directly on point. It does not appear to the Court that the rules of Code Civ. Proc. § 664.6 – which do require the Court to retain jurisdiction – apply in this matter. The Court notes that any express retention of jurisdi...

Excerpt: ... The Court understands the circumstances surrounding the filings, but cannot view the failure to timely file the separate statement as the sort of error the Court has the jurisdiction to overlook, as Plaintiff suggests. The separate statement is a necessary part of the motion (Rule of Court 3.1345. ) P la in t if f c it e s Mills v. U.S. Ba n k (2008) 166 Cal.App. 4 th 871, 893 for the proposition that a separate statement does not require that t...

Excerpt: ...claration: 9. SUSTAINED as to relevance. Objections to Klapper declaration: 10. SU STAIN ED . 11. O VERRU LED . Defendant's motion fails due to an insufficient separate statement. A moving party on summary judgment bears the initial burden of product ion to make a p r im a fa c ie showing that there are no triable issues of material fact. [Aguilar v. Atlantic Richfield Co. (2001) 25 Cal.4th 826]. If the moving party carries this burden, it causes...

Excerpt: ...d as required by the Court's order granting preliminary approv a l. Having considered the unopposed motions herein and the supporting declarations and evidence, the Court finds that the settlement was entered into good faith, is fair, reasonable and adequate, and satisfies the standards for final approval under Califo r n ia la w . (Civ il Co d e §1 7 8 1 ; Co d e Civ . Proc. §382; Cal. Rules of Ct., rule 3.769.) The motion indicates that the n...

Excerpt: ...pute in this case is whether an offset is warranted. The fees listed appear to be due to the City of Patterson under the terms of the agreement. The City is acting as a pass-through for the funds, but appears to exercise control over tho se funds and thus the parties are not the same despite the pass-through arrangement . The Court is also unconvinced that the current amount allegedly owed by Plaintiff is probably valid. Defendant refers to porti...

Excerpt: ...interim. Plaintiff's actions delayed this case without good cause to do so, and counsel is cautioned that the Court has an affirmative obligation to ensure cases are completed timely and to prevent recurrences in the future. This paragraph is designed to achieve that objective . The Court tends to agree with Plaintiff that the phraseology in the Notice of Motion is not ideal, but it does make clear that there is a challenge to the dangerous condi...

Excerpt: ...r im a r y is s u e s r a is e d in t h e first de murre r . First Cause of Act ion: Bre ach of Cont ract . At the pleading stage, the Court d e c lin e s t o f in d t h a t in t e g r a t io n o f t h e t e r m s in t h e e m a ils is n e c e s s a r ily v o id . Whether a collateral agreement is intended to be a part of the bargain is based on the totality of t he circumstance s. ( Ma st erson v. Sine (1968) 68 Cal.2d 222). Defendant argues tha...

Excerpt: ...Construction LLC dba Solgen Electric. She discussed this with them in November, 2022. She received a loan from WebBank, obtained via an electronic lending platform operated by Solar Mosaic LLC to pay for the solar roofing, on recommendation of Solgen. Plaintiff alleges she signed a contract on December 2, 2022, the same day she was provided the contract, in her First Amended Complaint. In her declaration opposing this motion, she says she was ask...

Excerpt: ... separate statements, and the contnuance is intended to allow Defendant to submit a supplemental opposition responding to the same by the opposition deadline as calculated from the continued hearing date. The Court does not view the failure to timely submit a separate statement as merely procedural; separate statements give the Court and the other party necessary information. The Court anticipates the issues will be narrowed prior to the hearing ...

Excerpt: ...e to the First Amended Complaint as a whole. Most of these arguments have either been made, or were available to be made against the initial complaint. The appearance of an amended complaint does not resuscitate rights to a demurrer which have been otherwise forfeited. Uncertainty A demurrer for uncertainty should be sustained only where the pleading is so unintelligible that the defendant cannot reasonably respond. (See Khoury v. Maly's of Calif...

Excerpt: ...quests. Counsel is cautioned that such combined motions are disfawred and will be rejected when submitted for filing in the future. At the hearing on this matter, the Court is inclined to continue all of the discovery motons set through the end of this month and in February to February 29, 2024 at 9:30 a.m. and may require personal appearances by counsel. At that hearing, the Court might appoint a discovery referee. The Court is dissatisfied with...

Excerpt: ...nder in Defendants Jacob Zensen/Sweep-Rite INC.'S Motion for Protective Order, and Defendant Issac Villareal JR.'S Joinder in Motion for Sanctions and Appointment of Discovery Referee - HEARING REQUIRED. a-c) HEARING REQUIRED. The Court intends to designate this as a complex case. At the hearing on this matter, the Court is inclined to continue all of the motions set throughout February to Wednesday February 21, 2024 at 1:30 p.m. and require pers...

Excerpt: ...Petitioner personally asserts that "l also believe that the ALJ was biased against me because she did not consider any of my evidence, but just accepted everything the accusers said." PROCEDURAL SUMMARY Petitioner operates a day care with one regular long-term employee, Kelly Buttram. Respondent intended to revoke her day care license, and a hearing was held in front of Administrative Law Judge Karen Reichmann on June 21 and June 22 of 2023. Judg...

Excerpt: ...nes and limitations should be placed? The Court will not continue this case again. Plaintiff gives a more substantially complete recitation of the procedural history. Defense expert Dr. Pereira examined Plaintiff on January 14, 2022 and issued a report on January 26, 2022, asserting expertise on Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) and asserting that Plaintiff likely did not suffer this condition. Plaintiff's expert, Dr. Ol_aughlin, examined Pla...

Excerpt: ...card by Plaintiff. (UMF 1.) Plaintiff sent Defendant a credit card with a copy of the customer agreement. (UMF 2.) under the terms set forth in the customer agreement, Defendant manifested his assent to the contract when he used the card. (UMF 3.) Pursuant to the terms of the customer agreement, Plaintiff extended credit to Defendant whereby Defendant could charge for goods or services or obtain cash advances. (UMF 4.) In exchange, Defendant was ...

Excerpt: ...inal fairness hearing and subject to final approval by this Court. Defendant's objection to Exhibit 5 attached to the 11/16/23 Mallison Declaration is OVERRULED, and the request to strike is DENIED. This is Plaintiff Kristeena Tinnin's own mediation brief, and Defendant failed to highlight any of its own confidential information in the document. Defendant therefore has no standing to object to the public filing of the brief. Defendant asserts tha...

Excerpt: ...ery and all objections have been waived. (Code Civ. Proc. S 2030.290(a).) Therefore, Petitioner is entitled to an order compelling Mr. Joefield to prov-de answers, without objection, to the subject discovery within 30 days. (Code Civ. Proc. S 2030.290(b).) (b) The Court finds that Real Party in Interest has entirely failed to respond to the subject discovery and all objections have been waived (Code Civ. Proc. S 2031.300(a).) Therefore, Petitione...

Excerpt: ...aintiff Eileen Duarte filed a complaint for "reformation of deeds, cancellation of deeds and declaratory relief." Eileen alleges in the complaint that she is the sole trustee of the Duarte 1993 Trust, created by Joe and Mary Duarte. Eileen is one of Joe and Mary's three children — the other two are her sisters Defendants Irene (Duarte) Nelson and Kathleen (Duarte) Elliott. During Joe and Mary's lifetime, they transferred three parcels of proper...

Excerpt: ...aises issues with regard to the state of the administrative record. The Court currently believes an "unofficial" transcript is likely to be sufficient but expects to give Respondent tme to review it for accuracy. The Court further anticipates permitting tme for a sur-reply rather than automatically striking the reply. Therefore, the Court is unlikely to be able to consider the merits of the writ petition and expects to contnue the hearing to a fu...

Excerpt: ...aises issues with regard to the state of the administrative record. The Court currently believes an "unofficial" transcript is likely to be sufficient but expects to give Respondent tme to review it for accuracy. The Court further anticipates permitting tme for a sur-reply rather than automatically striking the reply. Therefore, the Court is unlikely to be able to consider the merits of the writ petition and expects to contnue the hearing to a fu...

Excerpt: ...ch appears to include issues the Court has already resolved. Terry says the Court has no discretion to do anything other than grant her motion. She is wrong. First, she says that under Marriage of Woolsey (2013) 220 Cal.App.4th 881 at 898, the permissive "may" in S 664.6 becomes a "shall," if the Court finds the settlement enforceable. The Court was unable to find this language and is unconvinced. But more to the point, the Court has already foun...

Excerpt: ... to contain contract specifics inclusive of the date renders the complaint fatally vague. Second, the failure to allege a contractor's license causes the complaint to fail as currently pled. (See Phoenix Mechanical Pipeline, Inc. v. Space Exploration Technologies (2017) 12 Cal.App.5th 842.) The Court is skeptical that expert testimony is necessary. Plaintiff's contenton that the contractor's license is necessary is not supported by the Space X ca...

Excerpt: ...dly injured in the accident and the timeframe for the medical records to 15 years before the date of the accident. The request for a protective order is DENIED, as the specifics of a protective order were not addressed in the motion. If counsel wish to agree on a protective order, the Court is likely to enter one. The Court views the limitation at 15 years and the body parts involved as sufficient given the facts of the case. The initial request ...

Excerpt: ...Production of Documents; Request for Sanctons— GRANTED, and a) The Court finds that Plaintiff entirely failed to to the subject discovery and all objections are waived. (Code Civ. Proc. S 2030.290(a).) Therefore, Defendants are entitled to an order compelling Plaintiff to provide verified responses, without objection, within 14 days. (Code Civ. Proc. S 2030.290(b).) The Court further finds that Defendants are entitled to an award of monetary sa...

Excerpt: ... the arbitration proceedings. The representative claims in the class action complaint are dismissed. Both the individual and representative portions of the PAGA complaint are stayed pending arbitration. a) Defendant contends that California law is pre-empted in these complaints by the Federal Arbitration Act ("FAA"). Plaintiff does not dispute Defendant's contention that it is engaged in interstate commerce within the meaning of the FAA and thus ...

Excerpt: ...pt sanctions. As to the discovery dispute, the Court intends to grant Plaintiff's remaining requests in full. Plaintiff's requests for the search terms seems entirely reasonable, and the other requests for responsive documents appears to have been met with non-responsive additions. The Court does not issue discovery sanctons in this case, as meet and confer efforts prior to the initial hearing date were insuffcient. Importantly, Defendant argues ...

Excerpt: ...6) 44 Cal.App.4th 194, the existence of a valid written contract renders invalid claims of unjust enrichment or implied-in-fact contract. Because of this, it is unclear which specific theory Plaintiff is electing. The Court finds that the pleading fails to allege conduct beyond the failure to pay the subject rebates as promised; therefore, the present allegations do not support the Cause of Action for Breach of the Implied Covenant of Good Faith ...

Excerpt: ...Sur-Reply below. Rulings on Defendants' objections: 2. 3. 4. OVERRULED. This is a bare assertion. SUSTAINED. OVERRULED. OVERRULED. The Court has two motions before it: One is styled as a Motion to Compel Defendants' Responses to Plaintiff's Special Interrogatories, Set One, and the other as a Motion to Compel Defendants' Responses to Plaintiff's Request for Documents, Set One, both filed October 18, 2023 (all dates are in 2023). Neither motion ha...

Excerpt: ...quest, itemize the deductions. The Court "shall" make whole Plaintiff and his counsel. The Court finds the rates cited as reasonable and notes that Plaintiff's counsel appears to have not contributed adversely to the substantial delay this case has suffered. This amount is to be paid within 30 days. The Court further issues a $750 penalty payable to the Court under Code Civ. Proc. S 473(c)(1)(A). This matter has taken more of the Court's time tha...

Excerpt: ...-8: OVERRULED. It is not entirely clear that these statements are based on direct knowledge, but the Court assumes they are. Objection 9: OVERRULED. The Court takes this as a statement of opinion. Objection 10: SUSTAINED. Plaintiff Bettencourt filed a Complaint in this action on July 6, 2021, alleging negligence by various defendants including Fletcher K and Escalera (UMF 1-2.). Plaintiff alleged that she tripped on a bush stump. (UMF 3). Fletche...

Excerpt: ... adjacent to Alcantar's property, and it is disputed whether Alcantar had responsibility for the sidewalk. After he was sued, it was determined that the insurance company was not paid via the accounts. As to the Third Cause of Acton for Negligence, Cenlar's strongest argument is the economic loss rule. But as noted in Southern California Gas Leak Cases (2019) 7 Cal. 5th 391, the primary exception to the general rule of no-recovery for negligently...

Excerpt: ...nably entitled to $24,756 in attorney's fees, $3258.33 in costs and $760 in unpaid sanctions awarded by the Court on 3/8/23. (Nightingale v. Hyundai Motor America (1994) 31 cal.App.4th 99, 104) b) As a general rule, the Court may amend its judgment at any time so that the judgment will properly designate the real defendants. (Danko v. O'Reilly (2014) 232 Cal. App. 4th 732, Cade Civ. Proc. S 187.) Furthermore, Code of Civil Procedure S 187 which g...

Excerpt: ...sk Manager to "accept, negotiate, settle and pay general liability and worker's compensation claims up to" and respectively, whereas Plaintiffs claim notice was for The Court therefore finds that said Human Resources Director and Risk Manager were not authorized to reject Plaintiff's claim. The Court accordingly finds the rejection emanating from the City of Modesto dated 5/12/22 to be invalid and ineffective. Accordingly, Defendant's demurrer to...

Excerpt: ...mages The Court grants the MS] on the following -ssues: Issue 5: Discrimination. Issue 6: Retaliation. PROCEDURAL ISSUES: The language and numbering of the issues is not exactly parallel in the notice of moton and the separate statement. As such, the Court has the discretion to deny the moton on that basis. The Court declines to do so. EVIDENTIARY ISSUES: Plaintiff's objections to Defendant's evidence: 1-3: Overruled. These objections go toward w...

Excerpt: ...ly. The Court finds that there is no excusable neglect, which is the only grounds cited in the Notice of Moton or Motion itself. Further, there was no Answer attached to the motion, which renders the Court without authority to proceed. The Court cannot rule on the motion effectively made in the reply brief without giving Plaintiff an opportunity to respond, which is one option. If Plaintiff elects to have the motion for mandatory relief heard wai...

Excerpt: ... neurological examination." It then lists some issues the doctor will check and concludes that he will do other medically necessary tests. This is facially deficient. The Court considers the assertions raised first in the reply brief only to note that this still isn't sufficient. code Civ. Proc. SS 2032.220(c), 2032.320(d), and carpenter v. superior court (2006) 141 cal.App.4± 249, 260 outline the requirement to specify the procedures in detail,...

Excerpt: ...Court is unpersuaded that conversations prior to the filing of the complaint about the dispute are sufficient to give actual notice of the lawsuit. As Plaintiff concedes, the request for relief under S 473.5 is timely. Defendant asserts that he was not given actual notice despite multiple mailings and efforts to contact him. The assertion of lack of knowledge is unconditional. Sanctions are only available under S 473, and not S 473.5. In this cas...

Excerpt: ...l — and some fail for clear reasons. The Court is also required to limit sanctions, if any, to those that will deter the behavior. In this case, the request for attorney fees was by statute or case law, and by a reasonable extension of case law. Nonetheless, the Court does not view it as the sort of abusive conduct it finds sanctionable (and I have, indeed, found conduct sanctionable, and have issued sanctions designed to deter the adverse cond...

Excerpt: ...and the California Judicial Canons all require the Court to treat trial dates as firm. With regret, the Court believes it has an affrmative obligation to grant the motion under these circumstances. The Court is not at all persuaded by Plaintiff's claim that this amendment could not have been effectuated earlier. But Higgins v. Del Faro (1981) 123 Cal.App.3d 558, 565 instructs that trial courts should be very liberal indeed as to allow-ng amendmen...

Excerpt: ...ural unconscionability and some degree of substantive unconscionability. The Court finds that the agreement at issue is unenforceable due to unconscionability. The Court finds that procedural unconscionability is shown by the fact this is a contract of adhesion, there is no claim that the terms were negotiable, and under either party's factual assertions, there was some requirement to sign and return the documents to be hired. The offer also expi...

Excerpt: ...s wasn't accurate, and the Court ordered that the motion be immediately filed. Defense counsel indicated that the motion had already been prepared. The Court sanctioned counsel $750 to be paid to Plaintiff's counsel to pay for his time and efforts in appearing and going through two separate packets which did not contain points and authorities. The Court has discretion whether to accept the points and authorities, and uses that discretion to do so...

Excerpt: ...ponses are confusing and fail to identify whether Plaintiff possesses any materials responsive to the subject requests. Moreover, with regard to the asserted objections, the responses fail to identify the materials subject to the same and fail to provide sufficient information (or a privilege log) for the defense's use in determining whether the claimed privileges apply. Lastly, the responses fall to prov-de adequate support for Plaintiff's claim...

Excerpt: ...a Diaz v. General Motors LLC: "This Court once again reminds the Erskine Law Group, Inc. not to cite to unpublished Superior Court cases. (T8G Ins. Service Corp. v. Superior Court (2CM) 96 Cal.App.4th 443, 447, fn2.) Further reminders will come with sanctions." This further reminder comes from an opposition filed three weeks later. The Court suggests that counsel take a stronger interest in the rules governing attorney conduct. The Erskine Law Gr...

Excerpt: ...ute a conflict. (End disclosure). Prior contnuance: The Court begins by noting that at the ex parte hearing on June 8, 2023, continuing the then-set trial date to October, Plaintiffs' counsel agreed with the assertion that liability was and remains a serious issue. Further, at that hearing, all parties represented that the primary delay issue was mediation and that the Court's delayed ruling on the Motion for Summary Judgment contributed to the d...

Excerpt: ...on of the LICL; a First Amended complaint adding a PAGA claim was filed shortly afterward. The subject settlement agreement and proposed notice are attached as exhibits to Attorney Bokhour's declaration in support of the motion herein. The motion is also supported by a declaration from Attorney Falakassa (primarily as to the experience of class counsel and reasonableness of the charged fees) and by a declaration from the representative plaintiff,...

Excerpt: ...itatons to Superior Court cases are not permitted. (TBG Ins. Service Corp. v. Superior Court (2002) 96 Cal.App.4th 443, 447, fn2.) There are good reasons for this rule; the Court does not have access to every trial court ruling, and cherry-picking is unhelpful. Further, I have an ethical obligation to be an independent jurist." Despite being aware of this rule, Plaintiff chose to file a brief that re-argued that this court should consider other t...

Excerpt: ...rapy was unnecessary. As to harm, Dr. Schmidt at paragraph 20 asserts as follows: "Ms. McCoy's harm from the administration of neoadjuvant chemotherapy/radiation therapy included incontinence, fatigue, and depression. She claims also to spend at least 4 hours per day on the toilet with diarrhea. None of these conditions she claims to have had prior to being administered the chemotherapy/radiation therapy, according her declaration and these condi...

Excerpt: ...ant Second Amended Complaint, which eliminated the Sixth and Seventh Causes of Acton from the pleading altogether. Therefore, the instant demurrer attacks causes of action to which the defense's previous demurrer was overruled, purportedly on the "new" ground that Plaintiff fails to sufficiently allege exhaustion of administrative remedies, as is required prior to bringing claims based on FEHA. This argument was raised in Defendant's reply brief ...

Excerpt: ...6 Cal.App.4th 443, 447, fn2.) There are good reasons for this rule; the Court does not have access to every trial court ruling, and cherry-picking is unhelpful. Further, I have an ethical obligation to be an independent jurist. FACTUAL SUMMARY A separate case filed on November 14, 2019 by Brianna Dennis in Santa Clara Superior Court involved the same Defendant and similar issues. This case was filed on June 22, 2020. Ross answered on July 23, 202...

Excerpt: ...nds that the papers demonstrate insufficient meet-and-confer efforts prior to submission of the instant motion. For example, it appears that the defense has proposed a stipulated protective order which would arguably permit the production of several of the items in dispute. Therefore, the Court has concluded that the parties have not yet exhausted the potential for them to further narrow and/or resolve the issues presented herein with the pursuit...

Excerpt: ...te of judicial judgment. (See, e.g. Britz, Inc. v. Alfa-Laval Food & Dairy Co. (1995) 34 Cal.App.4th 1085, 1106– 1107.) Moreover, the Court Þnds that Pe
Ÿ
Ÿoners have demonstrated their en
Ÿtlement to recover costs in the amount of $17,140, represen
Ÿng the a
©orney's fees awarded by the arbitrator and the Þling fees incurred in connec
Ÿon with this ac
Ÿon. However, the Court lacks power to award arbitra
Ÿon costs that should have bee...

Excerpt: ...oot as to him. The Court anticipates that the motion as to Aurora is not being pursued given the opportunity afforded to speak to her on August 9. Under Code Civ. Proc. S 2024.020, any party shall be entitled as a matter of right to complete discovery proceedings on or before the day, and to have motions concerning discovery heard on or before the 15th day, before the date initially set for trial, and except as provided in S 2024.050, a continuan...

Excerpt: ...mpetent expert testimony that they acted at all times within the applicable standard of care. Ko Declaration, paragraphs 5 — 11; and Monjazeb Declaration, paragraphs 6 — 11. This expert testimony is sufficient to shift the burden under Code Civ. Proc. section 437c(p)(2) to plaintiffs to provide evidence of breach of the standard of care. Causation must be proven within a reasonable medical probability based on competent expert testimony. Broo...

Excerpt: ...and conditions set forth therein and the Gross Settlement Amount and the allocation of payments. The proposed settlement terms are as follows: (1) Gross Settlement Amount of $480,000.00; (2) Attorney's Fees of $160,000.00 (1/3 of the Gross Settlement Amount) and costs of up to $10,000.00; (3) Settlement administration costs of approximately $10,500.00; (4) $10,000.00 allocated for PAGA Penalties under the Private Attorney General Acton of 2004 ("...

Excerpt: ...d not dispute the amount in either its opposition or its response to the separate statement. (See UMF's 44-45) As such, the Court is mandated to grant the motion. The Court orders Plaintiff to prepare an amended order consistent with this ruling. The Court also adopts its prior tentative ruling, as follows: Defendants do not dispute that the loan, lease and guaranty agreements were entered into or that the defendants have not fulfilled their obli...

Excerpt: ...in their favor. Specifically, the express language of the Property Management Agreement dictates that the contractual terms were effective at the time of Plaintiff's injury. (See, e.g., UMF 8.) In interpreting an express indemnity agreement, the courts look first to the words of the contract to determine the intended scope of the indemnity agreement. (Centex Golden const. co. v. Dale Tile co. (2000) 78 cal.App.4th 992, 996-997, citation omitted.)...

Excerpt: ...tends that as the contract is not attached and the allegations are insuffciently precise, the complaint as a whole fails. Defendant further alleges that a lack of specificity as to which Defendant did which things is fatal. Defendant is correct. The Demurrer The First Cause of Action for Declaratory Relief This cause of action is based on the parties' respective rights under the insurance contract, and therefore the sufficiency of the allegations...

Excerpt: ...Judicial Notice - DENIED. As to Plaintiff's requests for judicial notice, none need be taken for the Court to consider published state or federal cases. The California cases are legal authority, and the federal case may be persuasive. The Court finds Defendant's request for judicial notice of unpublished state court cases disingenuous at best. There is a case directly on point. (TBG Ins. Service Corp. v. Superior Court (2002) 96 Cal.App.4th 443, ...

Excerpt: ...certifying the merger. The merger is the sole issue that Defendants contest, and therefore the Court is required to give Defendants an opportunity to respond. However, the Court currently views the request as valid. Defendants do not dispute that the loan, lease and guaranty agreements were entered into or that Defendant have not fulfilled their obligations under the agreements. Defendants only dispute Plaintiff's contention that CIT Bank, N.A. w...

Excerpt: ... had an existing SBA and construction loan agreement with ATI relative to its construction project at the hotel property but that the Bank served a notce of default against ATI based on a "negligent mischaracterization" of ATI's renovation project involving demolition of the hotel lobby as destruction of collateral which represented security for the loan. In addition, the Bank withheld further constructon funding it had promised to provide under ...

Excerpt: ...laint, or of any separate issue or of any number of causes of action or issues, preserving the right of trial by jury required by the Constitution or a statute of this state or of the United States. Keystone contracted with RGM to manage the property. Keystone's breach of contract cause of action in the cross-complaint against RGM concerns the amount of insurance obtained. The Property Management Contract contains an express defense and indemnity...

Excerpt: ...ona slant as the original moton Boilerplate usage should be clearly case related. Use of ALL CAPS is strongly disfavored. Bolded portions should be bolded for a reason. The Court intends to rule on the matter despite the late filing of the meet-and-confer letter. The Defendant's internal records are suggested to be a proper record for judicial notce. However, there is no evidence provided that the records do not reflect a claim being made. This r...

Excerpt: .... 5382; Cal. Rules of Ct., rule 3.769.) Good cause appearingto the satisfaction of the Court, the Court is inclined to find that the proposed settlement and the associated fees and costs are approved as set forth in the motions and supporting papers, as follows: The gross settlement amount is $170,000. Of that, $56, 666.67 is apportioned for attorney fees, $16,368.58 in costs, $7,500 for named Plaintiff, $8,972 in administrative fees, and $7,500 ...

Excerpt: ...t for production was served by electronic means on Friday, March 24, 2023. Powers Declaration, paragraph 4. Plaintiff's responses to the requests were received on April 25, 2023. Powers Declaration, paragraph 5. Pursuant to Code Civ. Proc. S 2031.260(a), responses were due 30 days after service. Pursuant to Code Civ. Proc. S any right or duty to make any response within any period after the service of the document, which time period or date is pr...

Excerpt: ...arch 24, 1999, as Exhibit A to the Complaint. Plaintiff's conclusion that this judgment vacated his 1996 conviction is not accurate. Complaint, paragraph 10. The judgment terminated Plaintiff's probation and converted the original restitution order of $46,993.00 toa civil judgment. Complaint, Exhibit A. Plaintiff alleges that defendants' actions in garnishing his bank account caused him emotional distress. Complaint, paragraphs 10, 11 and 14. How...

Excerpt: ... personal jurisdiction, the default judgment is void; such a judgment can be challenged at any time. (CCP S 473(d); Strathva/e Holdings v. E.B.H. (2005) 126 Cal.App.4th 1241, 1249.) Where a defendant challenges the court's personal jurisdiction on the ground of improper service, the burden is on the plaintiff to prove the existence of jurisdiction due to effective service. (Summers v. McClanahan (2006) 140 Cal.App.4tH 403, 413.) However, a filed ...

Excerpt: ...6 concerning incidences of Covid- 19 infections during August, September, October, November, and December of 2020, and January of 2021, with all patient information, relative information, or other identifying information redacted from the documents. Defendant is also ordered to produce, by no later than July 12, 2023, all documents responsive to Request No. 7 sent to governmental authorities regarding incidences of Covid-19 infections in August, ...

Excerpt: ...e Civ. Proc. S 430.41 A demurrer tests the pleadings alone and not the evidence or other extrinsic matters. Therefore, it lies only where the defects appear on the face of the pleading or are judicially noticed. SKF Farms v. superior court (1984) 153 cal.App.3d 902, 905. Defendant states that the Complaint exceeds the three-year statute of limitations, but defendant does not cite to a specific statute in support of this assertion that a three-yea...

Excerpt: ...overy requests as one involved with the events at issue in the subject lawsuit. The Munoz declaration is facially defective as it does not contain either the location of the signing nor the words "under the laws of the state of California," and is therefore stricken. Nonetheless, the Court has questions, especially to determine if sanctions are appropriate. b) HEARING REQUIRED. The Court has the concerns raised above and knows of no authority tha...

Excerpt: ...ong period of tme and there is some inference that they were coordinated. Additionally, the alleged statements by both named Ruijssenaars indicate some knowledge regarding the ongoing issues and the persons responsible. The Court rejects the argument that Ms. Ruijssenaars was the parent of Does 1-50, as this is not pled. As to the Eighth Cause of Action, the Court independently raises its own concerns that injunctive relief is not a cause of acti...

Excerpt: ...udge Begen on March 24, 1999, as Exhibit A to the Complaint. Plaintiff's conclusion that this judgment vacated his 1996 conviction is not accurate. Complaint, paragraph 10. The judgment terminated Plaintiff's probation and converted the original restitution order of $46,993.00 toa civil judgment. Complaint, Exhibit A. Plaintiff alleges that defendants' actions in garnishing his bank account caused him emotional distress. Complaint, paragraphs 10,...

Excerpt: ...efendant correctly points out some errors in the Court's earlier calculations. The Court does not believe it has authority to correct the judgment at this stage, as Defendant correctly observes. (a) The Court finds that Plaintiff's cost memorandum was timely submitted. (Cal. Rules of Ct., rule 3.1700(a)(1).) Specifically, the clerk's service of a copy of the file-stamped judgment did not specify that it was performed by order of the court or purs...

Excerpt: ...fs, to be paid by Cashman Creek Ranch LLC and Longstreth to plaintiffs' counsel Keric Cushing if Defendants accept this ruling. Otherwise, Defendants will be given additional time to respond to Plaintiff's late-filed detailed records. Plaintiffs' Request for Judicial Notice is GRANTED. Civil Code S 1717(a) provides in pertinent part that in any action on a contract, where the contract specifically provides that attorney's fees and costs, which ar...

Excerpt: ...s, Defendant was in possession of the full report. At the last hearing the Court attempted to discern why the initial report sent from Plaintiff's law firm was incomplete in a manner which led Defendants to err in their appraisal of the situation. Defendants also explained to the Court's satisfaction why the Defendant's representatives signed off on the prior admissions. Code Civ. Proc. S 2033.300 prov-des a safe harbor when the admission was the...

Excerpt: ...ferences for arbitration. (See: St. Agnes Medical Center v. PacifiCare of California (2003) 31 Cal. 4th 1187, 1195; and Engal/a v. Permanente Medical Group, Inc. (1997) 5 cal. 951, 971-972.) But the Court enforces only the "Applicant Statement and Agreement," which contains a PAGA carve-out. The alleged superseding clause in one of the other agreements can't overcome a separate agreement made at the same tme. The Applicant Statement and Agreement...

Excerpt: ... declarations prov-ded by Defendants authenticate the pictures themselves. OVERRULED. SUSTAINED. OVERRULED. OVERRULED. SUSTAINED as to the "I am informed and believe" statement only. OVERRULED. see number 2. SUSTAINED. Defendants Evidentiary Objections to the Declaration of Lori Sicard: 2. 3. 4. 5. SUSTAINED. OVERRULED. The reason for the delay in pursuing the matter has raised. OVERRULED. See below. The parties raise issues in a manner that is u...

Excerpt: ..., and as to costs the Motion is ruled on under the Court's Tentative Ruling on Carol Sue Hamilton's Motion to Tax Costs. Ms. Hamilton claims that Ms. DiFazio lacks standing to file the Motion because at the time the Mohon was filed Ms. Hamilton was only the proposed administrator. However, Probate Code Section 850 petitions may be brought by any interested person, and in any event now that Ms. DiFazio has been appointed as administrator she certa...

Excerpt: ...ithin the standard of care. Doctors Medical Center of Modesto, Inc. has filed a Motion to Compel plaintiff Bernadette Davoud to Respond to Supplemental Interrogatories, Set One, and a Motion to Compel plaintiff Bernadette Davoud to Respond to Supplemental Request for Production of Documents, Set One, both of which are set to be heard on May 3, 2023, in Department 22. The Court takes both of these motions OFF-CALENDAR as being moot due to the Cour...

Excerpt: ...ns and portions of the Tenth Cause of Action for Unfair Business Practices which reference other similarly-situated employees and the general public, on the grounds that the allegations are irrelevant and improper. Punitive Damages Plaintiff agrees that he cannot recover punitive damages for his wage claims (the first, second, third and fourth causes of action) or for his tenth cause of action for unfair businesses practices. Civil Code S 3294 se...

Excerpt: ...3, 447, fn2; Rule of Court 8.1115.) The reference to "this Court" and the same agreement caused me to look up the trial case; it was a different judge who did so. These rules are in place because it is not persuasive authority for an unpublished case of any stripe unless it falls under one of one of the narrow exceptions. This is not one of them. under the judicial canons, I am not to be swayed by citations to common practice or other judges' rul...

Excerpt: ...tes that the excess length of Plaintiff's motion is relatively insubstantial and chooses not to issue sanctons for that or other violations. Plaintiff is cautioned to review the Rules of Court. The Court is limited to the sanctions requested by the motion, and Defendant Derek Taylor Sr. has met the Court's and counsel's patience with failures to perform basic functions. The Court anticipates those issues raised in the reply brief will be remedied...

Excerpt: ... those questions; the Court will accept oral argument at the May 3 hearing on any issue. (a) As a preliminary matter, the Court finds that Plaintiff's cost memorandum was timely submitted. (Cal. Rules of Ct., rule 3.1700(a)(1).) Specifically, the clerk's service ofa copy of the file-stamped judgment did not specify that it was performed by order of the court or pursuant to Code Civ. Proc. 5664.5; therefore, the same did not constitute notice of e...

Excerpt: ... habit are to award attorney fees only when some element of bad faith is present; I do not want to, for instance, award attorney fees to a respondent where the evidence was simply insufficient to meet the clear and convincing burden. Here, Petitioner failed to note the existence of case FL-23-220, which she now concedes was part of the motive to seek this restraining order. This order was sought to contravene Judge Mumford's order in the other ca...

Excerpt: ...ched to the moving papers. The Court notes that Plaintiff's choice to refer to this as "an unprecedented injustice," does not clarify the geographic or temporal limits of "unprecedented" and invites Plaintiff to explain its position further. Plaintiff was uncareful in its submissions and the Court has questions as to exactly what has occurred. It does not appear to the Court that its clerical staff made any errors....

Excerpt: ... 2023, seeking a total of $6,825.50 in costs: $1,ff9.50 for trial court costs, and $5,155.90 for appellate costs. Mr. Limon timely filed a Motion to Tax Costs. Circle K claims costs of $4,716.70 under Item No. 6 of the Memorandum of Costs on Appeal for transmitting, filing, and serving of record, briefs, and other papers. See Stiller Declaration, Exhibit B, Memorandum of Costs on Appeal. Mr. Limon is challenging $4,489.20 of these costs as unreco...

Excerpt: ...on v. Mohamad, case No. CV-22-00032. The Court views it as likely that it will DENY the motion and stay the Hodgson case. The Court is somewhat confused in that all of the pleading reference a jury trial. However, demands for specific performance are not entitled to a jury (See: Darbun Enterprises v. San Fernando Community Hospital (2015) 239 cal.App.4± 399.) If Khan is successful, Hodgson would have a right to have the remainder of the case hea...

Excerpt: ...SUSTAINED. The assertions are vague as to the manner in which this was received. Objection 4: The Foundational objection is SUSTAINED. The Court notes that the declaration asserts without evidence that this is a picture prior to the breaking of the dial. Plaintiff has demonstrated Mr. Buske's status as a retained consultant to Plaintiff's counsel prior to the designation of experts in the matter. Therefore, Defendants' right to obtain discovery f...